Gamecocks Host Georgia in SEC Championship Semifinals
March 29, 2018
2018 SEC Equestrian Championship
COLUMBIA, S.C. – The University of South Carolina equestrian team is set to host postseason competition for the first time in four years when the Gamecocks welcome the 2018 SEC Championship to OneWood Farm. The meet begins Friday at 9 a.m. ET with Auburn (9-3, 4-2 SEC) and Texas A&M (10-5, 3-3 SEC) squaring off in semifinal action, and the Gamecocks (4-8, 0-6 SEC) face Georgia (9-1, 5-1 SEC) in the second semifinal at 1 p.m. ET.
Friday’s losing teams will face off Saturday at 9 a.m. ET in the tournament’s consolation match. A conference title is on the line Saturday at 1 p.m. as the two semifinal winners face off in the championship match.
Fans attending OneWood Farm this weekend are encouraged to visit South Carolina’s Meet Championship Page for complete schedule, live results, parking instructions and more.
CAROLINA’S SEC CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
• Carolina is 5-5 all-time over the course of five SEC Championship events.
• The Gamecocks won the first two SEC Championship titles, in 2013 and 2014. Carolina went 0-2 in 2015 and 2017 and split a pair of matches in 2016, including a consolation victory over Texas A&M.
• Carolina’s 2013 SEC title came at Auburn. The Gamecocks knocked off Georgia in the semifinals, 10-7 and defeated the hosts in the finals, 10-8.
• In 2014, the Gamecocks served as Championship hosts en route to their title. Carolina defeated Texas A&M in the semifinals, 12-7, and won a 10-10 tiebreaker over Georgia in the final.
LAST YEAR AT THE SEC CHAMPIONSHIP
• The Gamecocks fell to Georgia in the 2017 SEC Semifinals, 13-7, and they were bested by Texas A&M in the consolation match, 12-8.
• Four Gamecocks went 2-0 at the SEC Championship: Chloe Schmidt (equitation on the flat), Madison Sellman (equitation over fences), Ashley Reichert (horsemanship) and Bailey Walters (reining). Schmidt and Reichert each won MOP honors against Texas A&M, while Walters was the reining MOP of both meets.
• With her two victories and two top honors, Walters is now 4-0 all-time in her SEC Championship career, with four MOP wins.
LAST TIME OUT
• Carolina closed the regular season March 9 with a 13-6 win over Fresno State.
• Carolina swept the MOP awards against the Bulldogs. Madison Brayman (equitation over fences) and Chloe Schmidt (equitation on the flat) won for hunt seat events, while Madison Thiel (horsemanship) and Caroline Gute (reining) led the western squad.
• Gute and Schmidt have now each won MOP laurels three weekends in a row. Schmidt’s MOP was her fourth of the season.
• The Gamecocks had their most success in the hunter seat arena, winning four of five points both on the flat and over fences.
SCOUTING THE GAMECOCKS
• South Carolina is 4-8 (0-6 SEC) at the start of the week and seeded fourth at the SEC Championship.
• On the hunt seat side, Madison Brayman leads Carolina with six victories in equitation on the flat and seven equitation over fences wins.
• Chloe Schmidt is tied for the team’s flat lead, with six wins, and she’s a four-time MOP.
• Lauren Fabiano shares the fences lead, with seven victories, and she has won MOP laurels four times.
• Megan Overberg paces Carolina’s horsemanship crew with seven wins.
• In reining, Bailey Walters holds seven victories, best on the team.
• Schmidt was named SEC Flat Rider of the Month for March after winning two MOP awards in Carolina’s three regular-season meets.
• Paisley Roberts is a two-time SEC Rider of the Month for reining. She won the award in September and again in February after posting a 3-1 record with two MOP wins.
• Fabiano was named SEC Rider of the Month in November for her jumping efforts, while Kate Eagleton earned the NCEA’s Standout Rider of the Month award in November.
• Horsemanship standout Reggie was named NCEA Horse of the Month for January. A member of the Carolina squad since 2012, Reggie has competed at both the SEC and NCEA Championships and has been an NCEA top-10 horse each season since 2012-13.
SCOTT NAMED TO SEC COMMUNITY SERVICE TEAM
• Sophomore Jordan Scott was named to the 2017-18 SEC Equestrian Community Service Team, the league announced March 27.
• Scott has logged 250 community service hours during the 2017-18 season, tops on the team.
• Scott spent most of her summer break in Colorado as a camp counselor with Young Life. For six weeks, she donated her time mentoring middle school and high school girls. The sophomore is also active in Carolina’s Curing Kids Cancer events, helping to conduct equestrian camps for children battling cancer, and she is one of the leaders of the team’s annual Christmas Toy Drive.
SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
• Georgia holds the top seed in the conference with a 9-1 (5-1 SEC) record. The Bulldogs have won three straight meets.
• UGA last competed March 10, a 13-7 win over Texas A&M.
• Georgia won both regular-season meetings against the Gamecocks, a 14-6 win in the Peach State and a 12-7 win Feb. 17 at OneWood Farm.
• The Bulldogs hold a 31-13 edge all-time against Carolina, though the Gamecocks have a 2-1 lead in SEC Championships meetings.
• Maddy Darst leads Georgia with 17 total wins this season, including nine in jumping.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
• Auburn is the No. 2 seed this weekend, with a 9-3 (4-2 SEC) record. They have won their last six competitions.
• The Tigers closed the regular season with a 15-2 win over Fresno State on March 10.
• Both regular-season meetings between Auburn and the Gamecocks went to the Tigers, 13-6 at OneWood Farm on Nov. 17 and 12-7 on Feb. 24 in Auburn.
• South Carolina and Auburn are even at 22 wins apiece in 44 prior meetings.
• Deanna Green and Kelsey Jung pace Auburn with nine horsemanship wins apiece, while Hayley Iannotti owns 11 flat triumphs.
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
• Texas A&M enters the week as the No. 3 seed. They are 10-5 overall, 3-3 in the league.
• TAMU blanked West Texas A&M, 17-0, in their regular-season finale on March 23.
• Carolina fell in its regular-season opener to the Aggies, 12-8 on Sept. 29, and at OneWood Farm TAMU scored a 12-6 win on Feb. 10.
• The Aggies hold a 13-10 lead in 23 previous meetings with the Gamecocks.
• Avery Ellis leads all SEC western riders with 11 wins in horsemanship.
GAMECOCK PROGRAM HISTORY
• The 2017-18 season marks the 22nd year of the Gamecock equestrian program, as well as head coach Boo Major’s 21st season at the helm.
• The Gamecocks have won three national championships (2005, 2007, 2015).
• South Carolina has two runner-up finishes (2006, 2014).
• The Gamecocks have won two SEC Conference championships (2013, 2014).
• Carolina won the 2012 Southern Equestrian Championship, the precursor to the SEC Championship, which was added for the 2012-13 season
MEET THE COACHES
• The 2017-18 campaign will be the 21st season for head coach Boo Major, as Major celebrated the milestone mark of 20 years last year.
• In those 20 years at the helm, Major has piled up three NCEA National Championships, two SEC Championships and two National Coach of the Year awards (2014, 2015).
• Associate head coach Ruth Sorrel is in her 13th year with the Gamecocks as the leader of Carolina’s western team.
• South Carolina welcomes home Kristen Terebesi this season, as the former Gamecock equestrian standout returns to lead the hunt seat squad.
UP NEXT
South Carolina ends the season April 18-21 in Waco, Texas, at the annual NCEA Championship.
